Flute

(fl oot.) [Fr. flûte, from L. flare, to blow.) (Mus.) A musical wind-instrument, consisting of a wooden tube abt. 18 inches long, furnished with holes at one side, for the purpose of varying its sounds by stopping and opening them with the fingers. It was known to the ancient Greeks, has a soft and pleasant quality of tone, is an important instrument in orchestral music, and, in consequence of its easy treatment, has become, in modern times,much in favor with amateurs.(Arch.) Flutes or Flutings are vertical channels cut along the 1 2 Fig. 329. 1. Grecian Doric (Par the non). 2. Grecian Ionic (Erechtheum). shaft of a column or pilaster. They are scarcely ever used in the Tuscan order; in the Doric they are 20 in number, and are separated by a sharp edge or arris; in the Ionic, Corinthian, and Composite, their number is 24, and they are separated by a small fillet (Fig. 329). Flutes are said to be cabled when they are filled in to about one-third of their height from the base with a convex bead. This is done to strengthen the column and protect the flutes. [s. 372]